Sports ramblings…with a Yankees bias!

Let’s Turn the Page to Next Week!…

I waited for the Baseball Winter Meetings with so much
anticipation and in the end, it was a week of disappointment.

Of course, the Yankees were solely focused on one
objective (Cliff Lee) and it is clear that Lee is in no hurry to decide where
he’ll be pitching in Game 1 of the play-offs next fall.

Noah K. Murray/The Star Ledger

While the Yankees waited and then finally made their
offer to Lee, the nemesis Boston Red Sox were very active in acquiring the long
anticipated first baseman Adrian Gonzalez of the San Diego Padres.I am not quite sure how they were able to
pull off the deal without the inclusion of a single major leaguer but the
Padres did get highly touted pitching prospect Casey Kelly and first baseman
Anthony Rizzo.They also acquired
outfield prospect Reymond Fuentes, cousin to the Mets’ Carlos Beltran and a
player to be named later.Gonzalez is a
huge acquisition for the Sox.As Don
Mattingly said, Gonzalez has a perfect swing for Fenway Park and he’ll be a
beast in their lineup.

Seattle Times

The Red Sox also pulled off a major surprise when they
signed former Tampa Bay Ray Carl Crawford.The off-season rumors had the Red Sox in pursuit of either Jayson Werth
(who subsequently signed the incredulous deal with the Washington Nationals) or
Crawford.However, after the Gonzalez
acquisition, it appeared that Crawford was headed for the Los Angeles
Angels.The move was a good one for the
Sox although they’ll pay a hefty premium with the extension for Gonzalez along
with the contract for Crawford.It will
be interesting to see how this plays out for the other Red Sox outfielders.Ryan Kalish proved that he is a major
leaguer, so it would seem that somebody will depart in a trade for potentially
a catcher (Kalish, Jacoby Ellsbury, or Mike Cameron?).

AP

Prior to the moves, I thought the Red Sox had the best
combination of pitching, hitting and defense in the division.Throw in Crawford and Gonzalez and there
seems to be a bit of a gulf between the Sox and the Yankees (and Rays).At the moment, the Yankees have only one
surefire ace to throw at the Red Sox (CC Sabathia).Behind CC is Phil Hughes.Sure, Hughes is capable to shutting down the
Sox but he does fall into the category of ‘you never really know for sure if he’s
going to have his best stuff’.After
that comes A.J. Burnett and for the moment, Ivan Nova.That’s it.Clearly, the Yankees pitching staff needs much work between now and
April.

Which of course leads us back to Cliff Lee.This off-season is all about Lee.The Yankees have made a huge offer for Lee (a
menu of 5, 6 and 7 year deals).The
Texas Rangers countered with a menu of their own offers and owner Chuck
Greenberg even flew to Arkansas to personally deliver the offers, bringing
along billionaire partner Ray Davis.

The Rangers have the wherewithal to pay Lee, although I’d
have to believe that a 7 year deal would hurt the Rangers for more than it
would the Yankees.Greenberg was
optimistic about the talks yesterday but I can’t tell if it is legitimate or
false optimism.

I am biased (of course), but if I was Cliff Lee, I would
look at this decision as how you want to be remembered in baseball long after
you are gone.To succeed in New York
gives players lasting celebrity.Paul O’Neill
will always be so beloved in New York, along with Tino Martinez and others,
even though they didn’t start their careers with the Yankees.At old-timer games, you see guys like Goose
Gossage and next year, Lou Piniella.If
you asked me to name former Rangers, I’d be hard-pressed to come up with a list
of the Hall of Famers.I lived in Dallas
during the days of Jim Sundberg, Nolan Ryan, Steve Buechele and Larry Parrish,
but I couldn’t tell you where they are today (well, except for Nolan of
course).Being a former Texas Ranger is “nice”,
but forgettable.Being a former New York
Yankee is first class celebrity status, especially if you win.If Lee is as competitive as I think he is, he’ll
view the challenge of the improved Boston Red Sox squad as an opportunity to
shine.Texas may have been in the World
Series last year, but will they be a powerhouse for the next 7 years?Tough to tell.With the Yankees, you always know that
ownership is committed to fielding the best possible team.As a player, I would want to be in the
environment of the team who expects nothing less than the World Series every
year.

Quality of Life?I
agree that Texas probably wins.The cost
of real estate is substantially less, and there is no state income tax.Lee can live in a mansion with acreage and
drive to/from the stadium with an easy commute.In New York, you’re going to pay a premium for housing and the commute
won’t be easy.But c’mon, there is
nothing like the city of New York.I am
a small town Midwesterner, yet I think New York City is the greatest city in
the world.I love the energy and
excitement of the city.I’ve lived in
Dallas.It’s a fun town, no doubt.But it’s not New York.If I’m Cliff Lee, the decision is easy.I’d be on the phone asking Brian Cashman
where to sign…

George McNish/The Star Ledger

I found it very interesting that the Yankees picked two
players in the Rule 5 Draft.They lost two
players including pitcher George Kontos but they acquired an Angel and a Red
Sock.The Angel is pitcher Robert
Fish.I don’t know anything about Fish
and more than likely he’ll be offered back to the Angels, but you gotta love
his name.I am sure that the TV and
radio announcers would love to say how Joe Girardi is “bobbin'” for Fish when
he goes to the bullpen.Turpen is a
pitcher the Red Sox acquired for one of the two Ramon Ramirezes they had on
their roster (don’t ask me which one it was!).I doubt that Turpen sticks but he was potentially on the list of players
for the player to be named later in the Gonzalez deal.So, if the Yankees made the selection to
spite the Red Sox, I am cool with it!J

I think the Yankees play for former Los Angeles Dodgers
catcher Russell Martin is a good one.I’ve
always liked Martin, and I think the combination of him and Jesus Montero would
be a good one.Hopefully, Martin doesn’t
get spooked by the presence of Montero and decide to sign elsewhere, like
Boston.I am hoping that Joe Torre and
Don Mattingly told enough great Yankee stories last year to entice Martin to pursue
a Yankee career!

Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images

There’s still a lot of work to be done between now and
spring training so hopefully things start to fall into place soon.Okay Cliff, the next move is up to you…

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